Group 2 Discussion Leading

Social/Mobile MediaandCitizen Journalism

BY Group 2

● Wang Xin ● Jiang Chunyu ● Jiang Shiran

AGENDA

Introduction01Definition | History | Channels | Characteristics

02 ImpactImpact on professional journalism | Social impact in Chinese context

03 ConclusionLooking towards the future

DEFINITION

What is citizen journalism?

What is Citizen Journalism?

Citizen Journalism, also referred to as “grass-roots journalism” and “participatory journalism”, is “the act of a citizen, or group of citizens, playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information.

---Bowman and Willis,

“We Media: How Audiences Are Shaping the Future of News and Information”

EXAMPLE: Citizen Journalism in the Arab Spring

A youth uses a cameraphone to capture the aftermath of a teargas volley fired by police on protesters near Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt. Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images.

--- The Guardian “Arab spring leads surge in events captured on cameraphones”

A screenshot of the RNN Facebook wall during the 2011 Cairo uprising

RNN: Cairo’s Rassd News Network, one of the biggest citizen journalism projects of today.

HISTORY

When did it begin?

The Assassination of J.F.K, 1963

The U.S. Presidential Election, 1988

Citizen Journalism:

More noticeable with the rise of social media and the online world, and more prevalent with the rise of Web 2.0.

Channels and Platforms

Through which channels do citizen journalists report?

Channels and Platforms

• Citizen journalism websites,

list of citizen journalism websites

• Social Media: Blogs, YouTube, Facebook, Reddit,

Twitter, Weibo…

• Special sections for citizen journalism on mainstream

media, e.g. CNNiReport

Characteristics

What advantages and disadvantages does citizen journalism have?

ADVANTAGES• Faster than professional journalists

• Reports things that may not be covered by

mainstream media

• Enjoys greater editorial independence, allows

uncensored contents

• Supervises the government and promotes

social equality and justice

• Opportunity for ordinary citizens to express

Advantages

DISADVANTAGES• Less influential than mainstream media

• Lack of professional training

• Biased, even false news rather than

objective reports

• Dubious perceived credibility

Disadvantages

EXAMPLE

2014 ShanghaiStampede

Hyperlink and information about the writer enhance perceived story credibility of citizen journalism.

---Kirsten A. Johnson and Susan Wiedenbeck:

Enhance Perceived credibility of citizen journalism web sites

“

The Impact of Citizen Journalism?

1 How does Citizen Journalism Influences Mainstream Journalism

2 Social impact of Citizen Journalism, especially in Chinese context

Traditional/Mainstream Journalism Citizen Journalism

• Professional journalists-code of ethics, cross-check sources

• Seek to control news

• Embraced social media to further their influence and get a scoop

• Lack of competition in the new media age

• Journalists are the costly expense in journalism, a sustainable economic model still needed.

• Amateurs, ordinary citizens- value transparency, do not have set value

• Challenges the news, offering an alternative perspective

• Social media has given the masses a voice and the means to produce their own content

• Add diversity to the media landscape

• Cost effective

Jounarlists

• Degrade the role of editing

and gatekeeping

• Study: different opinions

toward CJ

Journalism Industry

• The news monopoly

• Information source

• The content of news

• Complement the absence in

breaking news (e.g. Tianjin

explosion)

Collaboration

• A collaborative relationship

• Citizen journalist &

professional journalist

• Add value

Journalists

• In traditional reporting system, journalists are definitely the gatekeeper who play a vital role in selecting, writing, editing, positioning, scheduling and massaging information to become news.

• Citizen journalism degrades the editing and gatekeeping role of professional journalists.

Journalists

• What professional journalists think of citizen journalism?

• How they might incorporate it into their organizations’s news work?

• How they negotiate its challenge to their gatekeeping authority?

Journalists

There is a study on exploring the professional journalists’ attitudes toward citizen journalism.THINKING ABOUT CITIZEN JOURNALISM

The philosophical and practical challenges of user-generated content for community newspapers

JournalistsProblem Statement：• RQ1: In general, what do community newspaper

editors think of citizen journalism, and how likely are they to incorporate some variation of it in their news operation?

• RQ2: How do community newspapers negotiate citizen journalism, as a philosophical concept and a practical concern, in their role as community gatekeeper?

Method： Interviews with Journalists

This study relies on interviews with top editors at 29 community around the state of Texas. Using systematic sampling methods.

Results:

Some editors were more neutral in their positions than others. Some editors explicitly expressed conflicted positions, and indicated that they were struggling with the place of citizen journalism at their newspaper.

JOURNALISTS

• Editors Who Disapprove on Theoretical Grounds

• Editors Who Disapprove on Practical Grounds

• Editors Who Approve on Theoretical Grounds

• Editors Who Approve on Practical Grounds

Journalists

• Editors Who Disapprove on Theoretical Grounds

Davis McAuley, editor of the Bastrop Advertiser, said of citizen journalism, ‘‘It does not make any sense. News is meant to be reported professionally, not through some random citizen . . . Journalism is a profession and it cannot be done by anyone.’’

• Make a clear distinction between professionally trained journalists and everyone else.• See journalism as the business of professionals only.

Journalists

• Editors Who Disapprove on Practical Grounds

The newspaper stopped using it because of problems of slander. ‘‘My principal concern is that I see a lot of the citizen but not a lot of journalism. There’s a lot of slander and personal anger or bitterness, but not news,’’ he said. Floyde concluded, ‘‘I think it’s irresponsible, and I’m not going to experiment with it again.’’

• unworkable

Journalists

• Editors Who Approve on Theoretical Grounds

Shelly Gormey, editor of the Bay City Tribune, said she thinks citizen journalism represents an important aspect of the future of journalism. ‘‘I think journalism will not be replaced by it,’’ she said, ‘‘but it will be supplemented by it.’’ She said that ‘‘with tools like citizen journalism, actual

journalism will be well-assisted.’’ She said her newspaper employs citizen journalism ‘‘every chance it is possible. We have people getting involved and contributing.’’

• A distinct advancement • A natural extension of traditional

Journalists

• Editors Who Approve on Practical Grounds

That’s the only way we engage the community.’’ However, Saught said she thinks citizen journalism is the future of journalism: ‘‘Yes, it has to be. There is so much more to cover and [only] so many people who are in a position to cover it. So, I believe it is.’’

• a useful way• A workable solution

JOURNALISTS “Regardless of their position, though, one thing is clear: editors of community newspapers are thinking about citizen journalism.

Journalism Industry

Break the news monopoly of traditional media

Numerous ordinary citizens are given an opportunity to express their voice, to produce their content and to set their own agenda, not just led by the media itself

Journalism Industry

Broaden the information source

With the help of citizen journalism, traditional journalism can get closer to the readers and audiences；tailor their content in a more efficient way

Journalism Industry

Enrich the forms and content of news( 10 Ways Citizen Video Journalism is Impacting Media)

Images, videos, broadcasting , etc…

Journalism Industry

Complement the absence of traditional media in breaking news • (e.g. 8/12 Tianjin explosion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RNDlL-L4cI)

It is hard for professional journalists to attend every important issues on time especially the site of breaking news.However, citizen journalists are everywhere.They can not only be a witness, but also a reporter.What they record can be a vital evidence for traditional journalists to do further report.

“ “Traditional journalism is the outside looking in. Citizen journalism is the inside looking out. In order to get the complete story, it helps to have both points of view. “

---Peter Dooley (2008)

Collaboration

• Sustain a collaborative relationship that can be qualified as vertical

• A citizen journalist could help a professional journalist in terms of getting

information, being an additional set of eyes and ears.

• Traditional journalism can add value to CJ (standing alone it is not credible )

SOCIAL IMPACT

It’s a media system that is swinging between the party, the market, and the audiences.

---

Xilong Wang:

Through the eyes of citizen journalists

“

he rapid development of social media and mobile technology (Weibo, Wechat, Zhihu, Short Video App, Llive-streaming app) stimulated the proliferation of Citizen Journalism

T

Death of Wei Zexi

• Originally posted on Zhihu

• Reposted on Weibo

• Mainstream media follow-up

• Massive attention from the general public

• The essay received 53,000 agrees and 8,000 of comments

Death of Wei Zexi

• Empowered grass-roots citizen to fight for social

justice

• Pressured government to investigate

• Uncovered social problems - medical entrepreneurs

connected with the Putian system

Tianjin Explosion

McDonald’sCult Killing

More Examples

Wang Baoqiang’s Divorce

• Wang Baoqiang posted an announcement on his weibo,

saying that he was divorcing his wife

• According to Sina Weibo, posts with the hashtag

#WangBaoQiangDivorce have been viewed over 5 billion

times

• People voluntarily investigated the issue

• Endless rumors and false news

• Is the Citizen Journalism in China focusing more on the entertainment topics rather than other social issues?

• What are the deeply-rooted reasons behind this phenomenon?

CONCLUSION

CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE A POSITIVE VIEW

• Citizen Journalism is not showing a very strong capacity for representing public opinions thus far

• The rise of citizen journalism poses significant risks that could reduce the quality and reliability of information distributed to the public

• Citizen journalism will likely continue to influence and play a role in traditional media yet never fully replace it

• Citizen journalism has become a powerful tool to unite the media and the public to produce quick and detailed stories, which neither group could accomplish alone

• This collaboration has begun to revolutionize the way in which we obtain information about current events

• Citizen journalism in China has the potential to become a major player in representing the public